Spring Writing Extravaganza

When I told my kiddos that we would be writing a lot the last grading period I am not sure if they truly believed me. After pumping out 3 writing projects just in the last week, I think they have a pretty good idea I mean business!

1. Friendly Letter
We read Kevin Henkes Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse last week and write a friendly letter to Lilly discussing what we liked about her character in the story. The students also wrote what she could have improved upon also. Many chose her reaction to Mr. Slinger and the nasty note! The letters were attached to...you guessed it...a purple purse and I think they turned out adorable.

2. Bag of Good Deeds
We are working on a story called Serious Farm in our reading series and we read a story called Sylvia Jean Scout Supreme where the main character is trying to earn a scout badge for good deeds by helping others. We discussed ways we could help others at home, at school, and in the community. The students wrote their ideas on "marbles" and added them to their bag. They are strategically placed on our door as a gentle reminder:) Clever, right?!

3. 21 Days to Hatching
We are SO excited about the hatching going on in our room. We have about 2 more weeks to go but the kids are on pins and needles. Every day they walk in expecting chicks. I cannot imagine how they will feel when waiting for their own children one day. 3 weeks is nothing compared to 9 months!!! They wrote about the stages of the chick during the incubation and what happens at the beginning, middle, and end. An adorable chick popping out of its shell had to accompany the writing.

4. Acrostic Poetry
In celebration of National Poetry month and our novel study Charlie and the Chocolate Factory we created an acrostic poem with chocolate. It was a great way to incorporate adjectives {particularly adjectives with senses}.

5. If You Give a....
There are certain things I miss from my days of a kindergarten teacher and these books are one of them. I wanted to read a few books from this series but beef it up a bit for 2nd grade. We read several books as an example If you take a mouse to school, If you give a moose a muffin, If you give a cat a cupcake before I had them choose an animal of their own. This group of kiddos LOVES to draw and write stories. They had to write a minimum of 8 sentences {you should of heard the gasps and groans at first} but the stories turned out fantastic!

6. On My Easter Egg Hunt...
Right before Easter, the students were able to create their own Easter egg hunt adventure and decorate an elaborate egg. This was a fantastic way to kick off our own incubation process!